Rebirth of Spring 2013 and Prada

Imma start this post off with some non-fashion things. 1a. I was so excited to be posting all the time about Fashion Week but I just started a new job and classes started and I haven't been able to post as much as I want. Anyway, expect another post after the conclusion of Paris Fashion Week that will probably be me dying over the beauty that Karl Lagerfeld, Sarah Burton, and Marc Jacobs send down the runways at the conclusion of the best time of the year.
Which brings me to my question. I don't know what I'm doing on this blog (Clearly it's hot mess, party of one right now). For those of you that read this, tweet at me, or post in my tumblr (Links at the bottom of the post), or comment on this post telling me what you'd like to see here. Personal style, shopping picks, more reviews of shows, street style...etc. If you don't tell me I'm gonna do whatever the hell I want to do and this blog is gonna continue being a mess. But a wonderful, fashion-filled mess.

ANYWAYS

Goddamn this season has been so good. I'm really feeling pretty much everything that's been sent down the runways. Most of the shows are falling into one key trend: Black and white. But those shows that don't conform to that still feel fresh and exciting.
Spring 2013 is really about rebirth. Designers are making a clear departure from the direction they were going in. These past couple seasons have felt very antique-y -- Lots of florals and retro-inspired looks and it's all been amazing. The tweeds and tulle and velvet have been a good time. And they'll continue of course, albeit used in completely different ways.
Back to this whole "rebirth" concept. Ever since forever, but more specifically, since Bambi, flowers have been a symbol of the rebirth of spring. This shit is deep. Florals? For spring? Groundbreaking. Except this time it is.
No one can deny Miuccia's clever use of symbols or Prada's unusual power as a symbol itself. Lets take a look at Prada's spring collection as a continuation from her last couple shows.

From right: Fall '11, Spring '12, Fall '12, Spring '13 (All photos from Style.com)

Fall 2011: Lets throw on some sequins to show innocent, glamourous femininity.
Spring 2012: Throw together a shit-ton of patterns and pastels to show feminine sweetness.
Fall 2012: That wasn't enough patterns, we need more, and toss on some jewels too to show the bare pleasure of fashion.
Spring 2013: Strip that all off to show our yearning for innocence and dreams.

I know it sounds like I'm being facetious, but I'm really not. (If you don't know by now that nothing I say should be taken totally seriously, like, I don't know what to tell you), I literally die for Miuccia. Shes a genius.

Each collection has been just additions, add more and more onto these amazing looks. Sequins, fur, snakeskin, patterns, more patterns, jewels. Then came Resort 2013, in which Miuccia brought out 12 looks alongside her menswear show. Usually in a fashion show there is a sense of build to a couple over-the-top finale looks. Not so for resort, there was no build, the show ended with looks very similar to all the other looks in the collection. Miuccia herself said the show was a blank canvas.

A blank canvas for Spring 12. Where she showed looks unbelievably different from what she's been showing recently. And the flower motif (seen on 99% of the looks) is a symbol for this rebirth. Back to Bambi and the flowers: they show this rebirth out of the blank canvas she gave us at Resort. Fashion this spring is not meant to be a direct continuation of fall -- instead it is a time of change.

I declare upon Prada that Spring 2013 is a rebirth of fashion.

Designers have been pushing against the over-the-top fashions of earlier seasons and going minimal. Designers who usually throw on the colors and patterns stuck to white and monochrome prints. The sheer amount of black and white has been insane. This is a rebirth into modernity. Collections have been looking futuristic, but not like a futuristic costume -- more like we've finally made it to the future and these are the clothes we're wearing. Plastics; slick, glossy looks; cutouts; even glow-in-the-dark.
Prada gave us the blank canvas upon which to paint the new generation of clothes.

Obviously I can't list or show all the designers doing this, so heres some of my favorites. Not because they show the best examples but because they're the prettiest. And like, what's the point of a post about fashion if it's not maximizing the potential beauty it can show? Because without beauty, what is fashion?

From right: Marc Jacobs, Emilio Pucci, Oscar de la Renta, Gucci

Marc presented a 60's mod-inspired collection that felt completely modern instead of retro. Most looks were black and white, and featured sequins and tons of stripes (Read my full review here). Pucci, who usually shows colors and patterns galore stuck to white, black, and red in a stunning collection. Oscar de la Renta showed a collection packed full of beauty (Despite all the f-ing drama surrounding it with Cathy Horyn) and this black and white dress with the gold embellishment grabbed my eye. So glamourous. Gucci pushed away from the dark patterns of late and showed a bright collection with minimal patterns including this gorgeous white gown with the red/orange decoration on the neckline.

From Right: Chado Ralph Rucci, Alexander Wang, Roberto Cavalli, Burberry Prorsum

Chado Ralph Rucci brought it this season - showing futuristic perfection - lots of white, cutouts, and pink. Alexander Wang proved that glow-in-the-dark can be chic, it's not just for children's toys with his theatric finale. His collection full of cutouts dazzled. Roberto Cavalli's flawless spring collection started off white, then brought in color and futuristic patterns. This white look killed me. Burberry Prorsum's collection was largely full of color, but all of it was glossy and beyond modern. The modified cuts of traditional trench coats and dresses showed that Christopher Bailey is looking at the past for inspiration for the future.

Remember to tweet (@fashstylefab) or post on my tumblr (fashionstylefabulous.tumblr.com), or comment below what you'd like to see more of here! Otherwise this shit show will continue.

Marc Jacobs Spring 13

Mod Is The New Black

This is why I love Marc Jacobs so much. He literally always gives us exactly what we don't expect. After the extravagant, absurdist, fur-hat-filled experience that was his Fall collection, he pulled a complete 180 and brought out a collection that "minimal" can't properly describe. "Brutal in its simplicity" is how he characterized it. I think that is a much better label for the collection.
These overly-simple looks had so many details that they all remained beyond interesting. The variations on stripes, (which towards the beginning of the show were just variations on size evolved into changing the spacing, placement, repetition, and even shape of them) brought so much energy and cohesiveness to the collection. See-through pieces, midriff, and almost body-con-tight dresses brought some overt sex appeal to this harsh collection.

Look after look of muted dresses, tops, and skirts came down the runway full of thick, bold prison stripes, very pointy shoes, calf-length skirts, a couple peeks of leopard, and plenty of midriff. His resort collection was inspired by Cindy Sherman's clown series, and it seems he is still thinking about that. There were a few circus influences towards the middle of the show: the scalloped minidress on the right above alludes to a circus tent, and the looks with excessively-large collars (one shown on the left below) hint at the clown influence. (Who knew? Clowns in fashion? I'm still puzzled by Marc Jacobs Resort...Clearly I'm the one that's still thinking about it)

Sidenote: Mickey Mouse crop-top? I'm dead. So good.

Marc Jacobs designs by deconstructing vintage clothes and studying their construction and design, and then sees how he can modernize them. This unique design process has never been more evident. The 60s influence is everywhere here -- yet it all feels incredibly modern. The cuts and variations on materials (Sequined striped gowns - on the right below - closing the show killed me) brought those 60's fashion ideas into 2013.
Marc's shows are always good indicators of some of the coming season's trends. What I noticed here was a mix of 60's (mod) and 90's (midriff) influence, tons and tons of black and white (Which I've seen at pretty much all the shows so far), sheer fabrics, and this sense of intense minimalism. The finale, when the models walked out from behind revolving mirrors and filled the triangle-shaped stage - almost storming the audience - really nailed in the brutality of it all.

So it looks like Mod is the new black, at least for this season until Marc completely pulls the rug out from under everyone yet again.

Resort 2013 - The Season of Silhouettes

This resort season wasn't exactly what I was expecting. While I was expecting designers to play with patterns and textures (which they still did), many of them seem to be playing with silhouettes in fun, exciting ways.

Marc Jacobs

All Photos from Style.com

Marc took inspiration from Cindy Sherman's clown series, which, at first, seems like an odd place to take fashion inspiration from. Well, not just at first, it still seems very odd. The results are mixed, I'm not the biggest fan of the color palette (every color ever), but there were some pieces I loved. But I'm here for the silhouettes. Marc really played with different shapes this season - long tops over enormous, clown-like pants, lots of big skirts (though big seems like a too-gentle term to describe some of them), cap sleeves gone crazy, and long, rectangular dresses. The collection feels like a continuation from his Dr. Seuss-like Fall collection. It seems as if Marc Jacobs is having a lot of fun with his designs lately, and he doesn't want to leave any silhouette out.

Balenciaga

This collection was all about the mix of hard and soft. Light pastels with black accents, a flowing cream-colored dress with a leather halter, skirts that can only be described as "flouncy" with a form-fitting top, a light skirt with a highly structured jacket. This led to some very interesting designs and some really different shapes for looks. Nicolas Ghesquière has moved the peplum down from the waist and gave skirts a turn-up at the bottom (I've never been a peplum's biggest fan, I'm so excited about this) which adds to the skirt's interest, and, frankly, is just fun and adorable. The structured-sleeve jacket is something we saw a lot in the fall shows, and Ghesquière is continuing that, and doing so in different ways. The third looks above shows he has created the incredibly structured arm with a soft fabric - an unexpected juxtaposition that gives the arm and the entire look a new silhouette. The entire collection with filled with looks like that, introducing new silhouettes by altering old ones - the turned up skirt, the cropped, structured-sleeve jacket, structure with light materials, and, in that last look above, an oversized, light top with structured ruffles on the sides. By playing with old silhouettes and combining hard and soft materials, Balenciaga turned out an incredibly exciting resort collection.

Lanvin

Alber Elbaz followed his out-of-control-amazing Fall collection with this equally great Resort line. Elbaz did what he does best - highly creative designs and lots of dark colors and gilded touches. He also continued this mini-trend of silhouette play. Big, protruding shorts (first look on the left) and voluminous short sleeves (second look) mirror what Marc Jacobs showed. Then several of the looks had rectangular silhouettes, similar to ones shown both in Marc Jacobs and Balenciaga, but of course done in a way only Lanvin could do - a long square snakeskin jacket, and a flowing red dress with a square back. If the Lanvin resort collection is any indication of where fashion is heading soon, it is all about being bold with dark colors and materials.

Derek Lam

Derek Lam's resort collection is mostly full of neutrals, with lots of light blue and some bright reds. Along with that, there were a lot of rectangular silhouettes (the first two looks above), usually with some sort of twist - the undone light blue jacket in the first (kind of really amazing, turning boxy into sexy), and the wider bottom of the white jacket in the second. Again, he showed several exaggerated skirts, which I am such a fan of. And of course there were military details in almost every look in the line, because of course!


The consensus: Big sleeves, enormous skirts, and just new shapes and silhouettes

My Love/Hate Relationship With Mint Pants

Mint is, well, everywhere this season, and I kind of really love it. I mean, how can you not love such a fun and flattering color? I cannot wait until I get my tan on and really take advantage of my own mint pieces. Pastels, especially mint, became the colors of the season during the spring shows, below: (Chanel, Louis Vuitton, Marc Jacobs, Yves Saint Laurent. Photos from Style.com)

Then, Lady Gaga named Mint as the color of the season in her "Marry The Night" music video, and, since what the Queen says goes, it became ubiquitous. As I'm sure you've noticed, mint is everywhere now: dresses, tops, pants, shorts, skirts, mani-pedis... At first, it was my minty-dream-come-true. I absolutely loved it.

But heres the thing: mint pants are out of control. Not in the good way. I was so excited for everyone to be wearing mint pants - they're something totally new and unexpected that came out of this season. They give an outfit a fun pop of color while remaining totally classy.
Everyone took that "fun and unexpected" part and turned them into the most overdone piece I have seen in a while. It's like no one is able to come up with an original outfit. The number of girls I have seen wearing mint pants with a simple white blouse was unreal.

While this is such a cute outfit, it already feels old

I have never gotten over a look so quickly as I did with this. By the end of that first nice day I was disappointed and over it. Heres the thing though: it's not like a white blouse is the only thing that would go well with mint pants, there are so many things that go with mint and would pair with mint pants soo well - whyy can't people wear them? Heres a short list:

Black (Maybe throw on a blazer or leather jacket)
Cream (trench coat, anyone...?
Navy (or really just any blue)
Patterns
More pastels
Light and dark shades of red

And I'm sure you can come up with more. There are *a lot* of options that aren't white; please choose them. Mint looks modern, but the mint pants/white blouse look has already been done to death and you won't look as trendy as you hope to.


Just to clear something up. I'm not breaking up with the Mint pants/white blouse look. But we're definitely on a ross/rachel break.